By ARIEL FERNANDEZ
Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) General Manager Ed Monreal confiscated the access passes of two members of the Office of Transportation Security (OTS) manning the initial security check of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 after a Japanese national complained about his money being stolen near the airport’s X-ray machine.
Police investigators identified the airport security men as Stephen Bartolo who was assigned at the arrival entrance of gate 2 while the other suspect was identified as Demmie James Timtim, an intelligence aide of the OTS.
The complainant, 25-year-old Yuya Sakata of Fukuoka, Japan narrated that upon his arrival 12:45 p.m. Wednesday from Sydney, Australia, he decided to go out of the airport and look for a smoking area as his flight to Cebu was still set at 9:35 p.m.
When he returned to the airport two hours before his Cebu flight, Sakata was surprised to check that his wallet, which he placed inside his bag that went through the airport’s X-ray machine, only had AUD$1,000 when it had AUD$2,700 before he placed it inside his bag.
Sakata immediately reported the incident to a security guard who accompanied him to the Airport Police Department at NAIA terminal 3.
Police conducted a reenactment of Sakata’s activity and it was during the checking of the CCTV that authorities discovered how Bartolo took out money from the Japanese national’s wallet.
Bartolo later on admitted to the theft and said Timtim was also a recipient of his thievery.
Authorities were able to recover AUD$300 where Bartolo surrendered AUD$100 bill while four pieces of AUD$50 bills were recovered from Timtim’s pocket.
The suspects will be facing qualified theft charges at the Pasay City Prosecutor’s office.
